MONTRÉAL, January 18, 2007 – Air Canada announced today the launch of a specialized ‘Western Commuter Pass’, offering business travellers and commuters who fly frequently between five key cities in Alberta and British Columbia more convenient and cost effective travel options, and a unique opportunity to earn automatic Air Canada Elite status for 2007.   To celebrate the newest addition to Air Canada’s range of popular Flight Passes, the carrier is offering a special bonus.  All customers who purchase a ‘Western Commuter Pass’ by February 17th will also receive a complimentary two-credit Flight Pass good for one return trip between any one of the cities included in the ‘Western Commuter Pass’ and Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Francisco or San Diego.

The ‘Western Commuter Pass’ is offered in several versions allowing customers to select the product and  attributes that best meet their travel requirements.   Options include passes with10 or 20 credits for a fixed number of pre-purchased flights, or an unlimited flat fee subscription pass to fly as much as you want for three or six months.  The carrier is offering automatic Air Canada Elite status for 2007 to customers who purchase a six month, fly-as-much-as-you-want, unlimited ‘Western Commuter Pass’ subscription at the Latitude level.  The ‘Western Commuter Pass’ is also available in a multi-user ‘Small Business Pass’ version providing 30 flight credits for up to eight different travellers from one company.

All versions of the ‘Western Commuter Pass’ are available at two fare levels: Latitude, offering maximum flexibility and built-in benefits such as complimentary upgrades to Executive Class, or Tango Plus, Air Canada’s value-priced option.  The ‘Western Commuter Pass’ starts as low as $129 per one way trip including all airport fees and charges.

Capitalizing on Air Canada’s schedule which offers the most flights year-round of any carrier between Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver, Victoria and Abbotsford, Air Canada developed the ‘Western Commuter Passes’ specifically for frequent travellers between Alberta and BC.  “Not only can ‘Western Commuter Pass’ customers save money, they benefit from price predictability and the ease of managing their travel online,” said Charles McKee, Vice President, Marketing. “With this, and the attractive offer of a free trip to the sun, the ‘Western Commuter Pass’ should become a basic tool of any frequent traveler in B.C. or Alberta.”

The ‘Western Commuter Pass’ is available for purchase at www.aircanada.com and for travel agents at www.aircanada.com/agents. Customers can learn more about how to select and use flight passes by taking a Virtual Flight Pass Tour at aircanada.com.

Air Canada is the only airline that offers its customers Flight Passes which provide the convenience to self-manage travel online, either in the form of pre-purchased banks of flight credits or fixed monthly subscription rates that provide for unlimited flights.  This past year, the airline launched the ‘London Pass’, its first pass for international travel, and the ‘Oil Express Pass’ designed specifically for oil patch workers in Northern Alberta travelling for work and leisure.  Other Flight Passes offered for frequent travellers include the popular ‘Rapidair Pass’, valid on the carrier’s frequent shuttle services between Toronto-Montreal and Toronto-Ottawa, the North America Pass with a choice of 8  travel zones in Canada and between Canada and the US, and multi-user ‘Small Business Pass’ designed for up to eight employees of the same company.  The airline also offers leisure passes for sun seekers, including ‘Sun Pass East’, ‘Sun Pass West’, and ‘Hawaii Pass’.

Air Canada and Jazz have proudly served western Canada longer than any other carrier.  Together the carriers operate more than 960 non-stop flights per day on 131 routes to and from 67 airports.  Between Canada and the United States, the carriers operate more than 390 non-stop flights per day on 89 flights to and from 51 U.S. and seven Canadian airports. 

Contacts:          Isabelle Arthur (Montréal)                  (514) 422-5788
                            Peter Fitzpatrick (Toronto)                (416) 263-5576 
                            Angela Mah (Vancouver)                   (604) 270-5741
 

Internet:            aircanada.com